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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/24511087">You Found Me</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/Claireabellalou/pseuds/Claireabellalou'>Claireabellalou</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Angst, Dear John Letter, Death Eater Theodore Nott, Enemies to Friends to Lovers, F/M, Fluff, HEA, Hermione Granger is a PI, Malfoys in Azkaban, Mechanic Theo, Post-War, Runaway Theo, Soul Bond, Soulmate-Identifying Marks, Soulmates, the one that got away</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>In-Progress</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-06-02</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2020-07-24</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-18 08:21:04</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>Explicit</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>2</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>3,814</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/24511087</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/Claireabellalou/pseuds/Claireabellalou</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>Hermione is deep in the woods fighting a war when she receives word from her boyfriend in the form of a Dear John letter. It might be too late to stop Theodore Nott from fleeing the Death Eaters but she vows to find him and bring him home once Voldemort is finally out of the way - a task she soon realises is not quite as easy as she initially thought as the Ministry of Magic places many obstacles in her way.</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Hermione Granger/Theodore Nott</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>6</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>30</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>1. Chapter One</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Hermione hadn’t returned to school after the war, most of the students had, but not her. No, she had more important things to do with her time than spend another year in that wretched castle. The memories of that fateful evening still continued to haunt her day and night. She often marvelled at how so many had managed to make the journey there that September, magic could do a great many things but it could not change what happened and the wounds were far too new for her to even contemplate it. That is not to say she hadn’t finished her education, of course, it was important to take her NEWTs and she had. By Halloween. She achieved Outstanding in all seven of her chosen subjects, a surprise to her since her mind had been preoccupied with finding one Theodore Nott. </p>
<p> </p>
<p>The Ministry of Magic thought he was dead, the Death Eaters thought he was dead. Even Draco Malfoy - his cousin, had thought he was dead. All indications led that way and the reputation of Voldemort and even Theo’s own father, Rowley Nott, was evidence enough. There hadn’t been a funeral. There was no headstone to visit. The son of a Death Eater did not deserve such respect. He had told her once that he would pay for the sins of his father, regardless of his own actions and intentions. She had tried and failed, to convince him otherwise. She couldn’t believe it was true. She had to believe their community was better than that. But he had been right of course. She saw it now. The undeniable proof that his name had been lumped in with the rest of the Death Eaters - for he was marked just as his father had demanded - just as he had feared - she saw how the Ministry wanted nothing to do with him. How they wrote him off as another bad apple they no longer had to deal with. Hermione had vowed to get him pardoned, get him cleared of every charge they had tarred his name with and when that was accomplished she would find him and bring him home - because she knew, without a doubt, that Theodore Nott was alive and she would stop at nothing to until she found him, determination coursing her veins like fiendfyre.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Hermione and Theo had been study-partners since they were only twelve, they hadn’t talked much, to begin with, but once it became clear they were equally as intelligent then things started to change. Their tentative association had slowly blossomed, a kinship forming between the pair.<br/>It wasn't a stereotypical friendship, it straddled the line between openness and secrecy. Right and wrong. Gryffindor and Slytherin. But it was their escape, their escape from everyday life, their own little world. As time went on, their topics of conversation expanded, and Hermione soon realised her feelings towards Theo were not completely pure because when he smiled at her she would feel her stomach flip and one simple look from those sea-green eyes had her melting. It was an effort not to devolve into a puddle anytime she was with him.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>That began in their fifth year just as he went through a growth spurt and his scrawny frame began to fill out in a very alluring way that she could not miss. After that, she found concentrating on her work much harder and would have to work doubly-so when he was not around just to keep up. Not that she minded, not at all, she was captivated by his every word. Every smile and glance he made her way.<br/>She hadn’t thought much of it. Passing it off as a schoolgirl crush and nothing more, she knew nothing could happen, house loyalties and war aside it wasn’t as if he liked her back. It was just a fantasy. Which is exactly what she had told herself every day until the day before the summer break and he sent her an owl. </p>
<p> </p>
<p>‘Hermione,</p>
<p>I have something of yours I would like to return. Meet me at 7 pm.<br/>I’ll see you where the stars live.</p>
<p>Theodore.’</p>
<p> </p>
<p>She’d known he meant the Astrology Tower. They had spent many nights there in the past and especially most recently with the weather being perfect for stargazing. He’d chosen the time carefully she noticed, knowing Harry and Ron would not bother to look for her when there was a feast, they would assume she was busy packing. She had a bit of a reputation with her friends regarding her packing habits. She dared a glance across the room where she knew he was sat and noticed him watching her, she let herself smile, a mere curve of her mouth as she carefully folded and pocketed the note before turning back to her breakfast and the current topic of conversation.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>The day went excruciatingly slow though she liked to blame Theo and his note for that. It wasn’t often he wrote to her and when he did it was usually to arrange a study session or other. It was odd that he would want to see her when they were parting the next morning. She was sure she hadn’t left any of her books or schoolwork with him and she even went so far as to check as she spent the day packing. Nothing was missing. She knew that much. So when she had finally finished packing and picked out something to wear for the evening - a simple sundress in sage green with soft floral designs. The hem resting above her knees with short, slightly puffed sleeves and a neckline lower than she would usually dare to wear. Her mother had sent her the light summer dress for her birthday earlier that year and she had never had the chance to wear it, it seemed only right to put it on now even if she felt slightly overdressed. It was June after all.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Hermione let her hair down as she ran her fingers through the curls, mussing them up to bring back life and volume into the usually constrained tresses. It wasn’t often she left it down as it wasn’t as practical but she knew she was seeing Theo and she wanted to make an impression one last time before they departed for the summer. She applied a quick lick of mascara on her lashes before slipping on her white pumps. She knew she was playing a dangerous game yet she couldn’t bring herself to care, months she had spent lusting after this boy she knew she would never have. She figured it was time to return the favour. </p>
<p> </p>
<p>It was only when she got there that her nerves settled. When she saw that he too had dressed a little more smartly than usual, that he was pale and sickly looking until he realised she had come. She had scanned him, head to toe. He wore dark jeans with a forest green jumper, the sleeves rolled to expose his forearms as one hand reached up to scratch the back of his neck in that nervous habit she had always found so adorable. He blushed as she emerged from the stairs, finally stepping into the small balcony atop the tower.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“Hi,” She had said, a little too cheery in her opinion as she tried to fight her own nerves.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>And that had been the start for them, the beginning of their story together. One that was full of wonder and joy and love and one that she vowed she would fight for. Even now. Even after he had left, abandoning her. After he had sent that dreadful letter, for her to find out she would not see him again. She would fight until she had undeniable proof that he was gone she would fight and she would find him and she would bring him home where she could give him a piece of her mind.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>He had been right. He had never done anything. She knew because she investigated thoroughly, he had stayed as clean as one could, who had been forced to take the mark. Cleaner than even Draco. And still they, the Ministry, posthumously, convicted him of war crimes that by their very own logic he could not have committed as he was considered dead. He had told her he would suffer the sins of his father and despite her objections, despite him not even being present. He had been right.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>And that was one right she could not accept.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0002"><h2>2. Chapter Two</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Once the war was over Hermione wanted to be productive. She couldn’t bear to sit around day after day wallowing in her grief over lost loved ones. For a while, she was sure Theo would come back now that the war was over and he was free. Except it wasn’t long until the Ministry of Magic began to reform and start their proceedings towards the Death Eaters and those who associated with them regardless of their reasons. Many decisions were made over the months to come and it wasn’t often that Hermione agreed with what was happening. Lucius Malfoy had been given the Dementors Kiss and whilst she understood why, understood he was to be used as an example, she knew there were far better candidates to receive the punishment, Rowley Nott would have topped the list had it been her choice. Even Greyback or the Lestranges would have been better options. They all deserved it. And more. But none of those had the same social standing as the Malfoys did, none of them could serve as the Ministry poster for what happens when you dally with Dark Magic.</p>
<p>Of course, Narcissa had not gotten off easily either, in fact, the entire family had been hauled in front of the newly - selected Wizengamot. Reporters had come far and wide and the pews had been fit to bursting. Hermione knew. Knew because she had been there to give evidence on their behalf. She knew, that night Bellatrix had maimed her, knew that Draco had done everything possible in his power to help them. He was stuck. He was treading a fine line of life and death and barely able to keep himself from falling. She saw how fiercely Narcissa had protected her son, stood by him, and then, on that fateful night at Hogwarts, she saw how Narcissa had lied in the face of Voldemort. A crime punishable by death had the Dark Lord been given half chance. A lie that won them the war. And then, once it was all over, she watched as Narcissa Malfoy tore her own robes apart to make bandages when none were left. She watched her tend to the injured, comfort the dying and not once did she stop helping. Even when the sun rose and reinforcements arrived she hadn’t wanted to stop. It was only the Aurors that put an end to her helping. The Aurors that dragged her away from whispering words of comfort to a dying student.<br/>
They hadn’t been gentle, they hadn’t cared for the child on the floor who just wanted a mothers’ love in his dying moments - even if it wasn’t from his own. They manhandled her roughly, their attitudes and actions only a degree better than that of the Death Eaters and yet, with the light on their side, they were excused.<br/>
Hermione showed them her memories, told them everything she knew of Draco and his mother and it hadn’t made a difference. It was never going to. It became clear to her the Malfot family had been convicted long before they entered the chambers that morning. Narcissa had been imprisoned for twenty years whilst Draco received life for his own crimes, including bearing the Mark. </p>
<p>Hermione had felt her world crumble around her as she heard the sentences read aloud. The breath rushed out of her, her knees buckled as she felt her body uncontrollably shake. She was speechless. And amongst everything, those Aurors hadn’t even so much as been written up for their treatment of Narcissa. She walked out of the hearing that day feeling deflated, knowing that if Theo did come back just him possessing the Mark was enough for a life term in Azkaban. She knew she had to do something. She didn’t know what or how but she couldn’t stand by and let it continue. Draco was a great many things, a schoolyard bully topping the list but he was not what his father had tried to turn him into. He was not a murderer, hadn’t participated in revels when the true Death Eaters had raped and pillaged their way across Muggle towns. He had been forced against his will, just as Theo had, to take the Mark. He had been held down, as a sixteen-year-old boy with nowhere else to go, as he was branded like cattle.</p>
<p>Having gone back to The Burrow once the trial was over, Hermione locked erself in the room she shared with Ginny as she let herself cry until she no longer could. None of them understood why it was hitting her so hard, why this was such a devastating thing for her - and she understood. They didn’t know about Theo, about the two of them. They had never told anyone. At first, it had been intentional but as time went on she had wanted to come clean - they had been camping in the woods when she was mulling over how to break it to them, deciding to go to bed and think it over as she picked up her favourite journal. On the outside, it was nothing special. Leather bound with a matching leather tie to keep the parchment in place. But inside, despite the empty pages, lay her biggest secret. The book had been a gift from Theo and a brilliant one at that. It was one of a matching pair that were connected together by magic. They were able to write to each other much the same way Harry and Ginny had conversed with Tom Riddle - though there was no dark magic in the making of these books, no souls enclosed between the parchment just Hermione and Theo and whatever they bared to one another.</p>
<p>He had been at school for their seventh year and though she knew he wasn’t telling her everything she still sensed how bad it was. They wrote to each other every night, the only way to keep in contact, to check-in and make sure each other was doing well enough. He even helped her decipher the clues left to her from Dumbledore and pushed her towards Godrics Hollow when Harry was begging her to go. When they finally were free after visiting Bathilda Bagshot that night, on Christmas, when they had set up camp and knew they were once again safe, Hermione had retired to her bed to write to Theo again. She wanted to tell him what had happened just as she did every night. Except for this time,this time when she penned in the password ready to talk to him, ready to see his comforting replies she was greeted with notes from him - though quickly she realised it wasn’t notes but a letter..a goodbye letter and by the time she had received it it was already too late. He was already gone. </p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <i>'My Dearest Hermione,</i>
</p>
<p>
  <i>I do not believe that I will ever again write something so profoundly difficult as this letter, something that every part of me is screaming at in protest as my quill continues. Because despite what I feel I know this is the right thing to do. For both of us. It is the only way I can protect you now.</i>
</p>
<p>
  <i>It will be Christmas once the clock strikes midnight and I am deeply sorry for that but this is my last chance. I have been staying at Malfoy Manor as you know, meetings are being held so often and with school over for a few weeks I was dragged here. It hasn't all been bad, I've had Draco for company, Morgana knows he needed it. Narcissa is as doting as usual; perhaps even moreso and that’s always nice and my nanny elf lives here now too so she made my favourite dessert - she never forgot. But, you see, dessert was ruined when Professor Babbage was killed on the dining table and all appetite was lost. I know. I know I would normally leave out such details but I need you to understand, to know that this is not something I am doing lightly. Professor Babbage was not the first and nor will she be the last, if anything she got a much easier and cleaner death than most I’ve witnessed. Of course that does not make it better, but as I sat there, my face a mask of indifference, as I refused to feel anything for the remainder of the meal, I was glad of that much. She was a great teacher and I just hope she knew that wasn't really me and Draco at that table tonight, that those boys were not who we really are. Because it's not. Fuck baby, I'm so scared.</i>
</p>
<p>
  <i>And I realised I couldn’t take it much longer, there is only so much of this I can pretend doesn’t affect me and yet all I can think of when I see these things is you, all I can imagine is them bringing you into the room and doing..Merlin, Hermione, I can’t, I cannot even tell you the things they would do to you, the things they do to other young girls..it is..not pleasant. And I can’t stop the thoughts that run through my head. I worry, constantly, about your safety, your wellbeing. Your..well, everything. I worry Hermione. So much. And tonight as I sat around the Malfoys dining table, as the meeting took on an even darker tone than usual and I had to listen to these people discuss hunting down your parents for fun to draw you out, I realised, I can not protect you. I can’t. It’s become clear to me now. I was a fool to think I could. I have subtly misled them on their hunt in the hopes they do not find your mother and father but tonight, when they leave, I leave too. Except for this time, I will not be coming back. Once they realise I have steered them wrong they will turn on me and my chances here of surviving were slim to begin with. I knew I didn’t have long, I prepared as such, my days were numbered from the start, this life was never for me - I just wish I could bring Draco along but he will not leave his mother, I understand his decision, maybe if mine were still alive I may have done the same?</i>
</p>
<p>
  <i>I am sorry. I am hating myself for doing this, I am trying, and failing, so hard not to cry for this is goodbye. I am leaving. I have to do this, need to do this, for both of us. You deserve to be with someone else. Someone who can protect you, someone like Weasley. I know I’ve had my say regarding him in the past but, he is a good guy, who will protect and love you at all costs, I know that much.</i>
</p>
<p>
  <i>Hermione, the time we spent together, the days in the library and nights under the stars, the secret sleepovers, picnics and everything in-between, every little debate or argument when I said the wrong thing. I treasure it all and I forever will. Being with you was the happiest I have ever been and loving you, Merlin,oving you is a gift and a curse because no matter what becomes of me or where I go I know I can never stop. My entire magical core and heart are full of you and that will always be true. You taught me to laugh even in the darkest times. You showed me what true strength and love really is and you gave me hope when there was none. I am grateful, more than you will ever know, for all you are and all you gave me - the memories of those moments will be all that I have as I leave the magical community behind. </i>
</p>
<p>
  <i>I love you, Hermione. I love you and I think I always have, and I know I always will because a love like ours can never die. I love you more with every breath. With every beat of my heart. I am sorry and hope that one day you can find it within your beautiful heart to forgive me.</i>
</p>
<p>
  <i>Goodbye, My Love.</i>
</p>
<p>
  
</p>
<p>
  <i>Eternally Yours,</i>
</p>
<p>
  <i>Theodore.’</i>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Hermione never told Harry or Ron after that and she never heard from Theo again despite writing to him many times since. Every night she would sit with the journal in her hands waiting to see if he would get in touch, every night she penned him a message and every night she set herself up for failure because Theo never replied once and as soon as the New Year rolled in The Daily Prophet declared him dead - she knew because she saw his face covering the entire front page when she had dared sneak into a village one night to gather some much-needed supplies. She quickly snatched the paper up, not having time to read it, needing to get out before she was caught - but as soon as she was safe, as soon as she knew nobody would catch her, she opened up the paper and her heart stopped as she saw his picture, that smile she loved and missed so much, his chestnut brown hair falling into his eyes as he tried to move it out of the way. She had had to stop to regain her composure before she let herself back into the tent but it gave her a chance to read the story that accompanied the picture and when she was done she folded the pages up carefully and placed it in her beaded bag as she let out a steady breath because she refused to believe it, she knew he wasn’t dead. The paper could print whatever the hell they wanted but she could not accept he was dead. She knew he had got out. She knew he was alive. She might not have had word from him but she could feel him as though his magic ran through her veins alongside her own. She would have bet her life on Theodore Nott being alive and that was what kept her going through the months leading to the Final Battle. The only thing that spurred her on because she was going to end this and prove them all wrong. She was going to end this and find him and bring him home.</p>
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